Cooking appliance with adjustable control housing



J. A. WHITE May 28, 1968 COOKING APPLIANCE WITH ADJUSTABLE CONTROL HOUSING 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 15, 1966 INVENTOR. JAMES A. WHITE BY Z 0&0 Z

H \s ATTORNEY y 1963 J. A. WHITE 3,385,284

COOKING APPLIANCE WITH ADJUSTABLE CONTROL HOUSING Filed NOV. 15, 1966 n 1 six...

INVENTOR. JAMIE-51A. WHH'E' BY Wk H \S ATTORNEY 2 Sheets-Sheet 3 United States Patent 3,385,284 COOKING APPLIANCE WITH ADJUSTABLE CONTROL HOUSING James A. White, Louisville, Ky., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Filed Nov. 15, 1966, Ser. No. 594,430 6 Claims. (Cl. 126-37) The present invention relates to cooking appliances and particularly to domestic cooking appliances that are adapted to be built into a kitchen counter structure, where the appliance is furnished with a control housing that overlies the back edge of the appliance, and there is an adjustment means for varying the front-to-back position of the control housing with respect to the appliance.

This invention is an improvement over the one-piece built-in range design of William A. Nielsen, Patent No. 3,051,160 which is also assigned to the General Electric Company, the assignee of the present invention.

In the early models of one-piece built-in ranges, there was no control housing or backsplash furnished as -in conventional free-standing range models. Instead, the heating controls were mounted either along the front edge of the range or on the top coolcing surface. Another alternative was a remote control panel that was recessed in the kitchen wall separate from the appliance but connected thereto by a power cable and control leads. Such ranges were usually supported from the countertop by cutting a notch through the front edge of the countertop as well as down the front of the counter cabinets. As taught in the Nielsen patent, the top cooking surface of such a range is provided with an outwardly directed flange which extends from the two side edges and the back edge of the countertop and serves as the support means for the range. There have been later range designs that simulated this built-in appearance, but were actually free-standing ranges supported directly on the floor.

The designs of kitchen counters are not standardized as to height, depth or to the front edge treatment of the countertop. Moreover, many different types of material are used as construction material for the countertop, such as, tile, stainless steel and laminated plastic sold under various trademarks such as Textolite.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a cooking appliance that is adapted to be mounted in a counter structure, where the back of the appliance is provided with a control housing that is adjustably mounted front-to-back so as to accommodate most of the varying depths of kitchen countertops now available.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a range with a control housing at the rear thereof which is adjustably mounted for front-to-back movement with respect to the range so that the range is capable of being accommodated to any depth of countertop so that the countertop need not be notched, but instead may be formed in two separate sections that abut against the sides of the range.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a cooking appliance with a control housing located across the back edge of the appliance, and quick-connect means for joining the housing to the appliance so that the appliance dealer may install the control housing as an accessory if the customer or builder desires the convenience of an adjustable depth appliance to accommodate various depths of countertops.

The present invention, in accordance with one form thereof, is embodied in a cooking appliance that is adapted to be used with a counter structure abutting each side thereof. Means are provided for supporting the appliance so that it has a built-in appearance and a fixed relation with respect to the counter structure. The appliance has an upstanding control housing extending over the rear 3,385,284 Patented May 28, 1968 "ice edge of the cooking surface and a pair of upstanding brace members fastened between the housing and the back portion of the appliance. The top portion of each brace member is telescoped into the control housing and is provided with a pin and slot connecting means between the brace member and the side walls of the control housing. Moreover, there are adjustable screw means for loosening the connection between the housing and the brace members so that the housing may be shifted in a frontto-back direction for obtaining the proper depth of the appliance with respect to the depth of the countertop so that the depth of the appliance substantially equals the depth of the countertop. Other modifications provide for a quick-connect means for mounting the pair of brace members to the back portion of the appliance. The preferred embodiment of the quick-connect means is a bracket member fastened to the back portion of the appliance at each back corner thereof and provided with a telescopic or tab and slot connecting means between the related brace member and bracket member.

My invention will be better understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary, partially exploded view of a domestic range that is built into a kitchen counter, and showing a dummy control housing with an adjustable means for mounting the housing over the back edge of the cooktop of the range.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary rear View looking at the right side of the control housing with some parts broken away and others in cross-section to show the pin and slot connecting means between the control housing and the top portion of the brace member which connects the housing to the back of the range, and

FIGURE 3 is a right side cross-sectional elevational view taken on the line 3-3 of FIGURE 2 and showing the nature of the angular bracket member fastened to each back corner of the appliance and supporting the upstanding brace member which in turn is supporting the control housing such that the housing is capable of being adjusted in a front-to-back direction.

Turning now to a consideration of the drawings, and in particular to FIGURE 1, there is shown a one-piece built-in range 10 provided with a top cooking surface 11 and an underlying oven (not shown) that has a front opening access door 12. The reason that the oven is not visible is that the range 10 is shown in its assembled position as being built into or between sections of a kitchen counter 14 having a countertop 15 supported by an underlying cabinet structure 16 with front opening cabinet doors 17. Such a range is identified as a one-piece builtin range to distinguish it from a built-in range where the oven is separate from the cooktop and is usually built into a wall structure, and the cooktop is a drop-in cooktop that fits into a cutout in the countertop.

The cooking surface or cooktop 11 is a recessed cooktop and the two sides and the back edge of the cooktop are provided with an outwardly directed flange 19. This flange serves as the Supporting means for the range and bears on the edge of the countertop 15. Other types of ranges which could take advantage of the present invention would be a one-piece built-in range that is supported directly from the kitchen floor instead of from the flange '19. Moreover, it is not necessary that the oven be an integral part of the cooktop .11. This invention would also be applicable if there was merely the cooktop 11 in the manner of the Urbank et a1. Patent No. 3,154,357. The cooktop 11 is provided with a plurality of surface heating means 2 1 which, in the case of an electric range, would be coils of metal sheathed re istance heating elements and in the case of a gas range, would be gas burners. A control panel 22 extends along the front edge of the cooktop 11. In the case of an electric range, this panel would be provided with a plurality of multiple selector switches 2'3 for controlling the energization of each surface unit as well as an oven selector switch 24 and an oven thermostat 25 as is conventional in this art. Equivalent controls from the gas range art would be necessary for a gas appliance.

A hollow, control housing 27 is adapted to be mounted to overlie the back edge of the cooktop 11. Some ranges need this control housing 27 to extend the depth of the cooktop to correspond to the depth of the countertop as is best seen in FIGURE 1. Hence, the countertop 15 can be finished along a straight line 28 on the left hand cabinet and along a straight line 29 on the right hand cabinet so that in effect the countercabinets merely abut against the opposite sides of the range. Hence, no notching of the countertop 15 is necessary nor notching of the front of the cabinet structure 16 as Was necessary heretofore, as is best understood by referring to the prior art Nielsen Patent 3,051,160, which was cited heretofore.

The control housing 27 may in some cases be a dummy housing as is shown in FIGURE 1, or in other cases, it may actually be a working control housing or backsplash to replace the control panel 22 on the front of the range. In the latter event, it would be necessary to assemble the control housing 27 to the range while in the factory. The present invention deals mainly with a dummy control housing 27 that is capable of being installed by the appliance dealer or the house builder who is assembling the range in the kitchen counter.

The control housing 27 is of elongated, box-like configuration having a bottom wall 31, opposite side walls 32 and 33, a sculptured front wall 37, a top wall 38 and a back wall 39 that is substantially open, since it is not necessary to close or seal the housing because the housing is backed against a kitchen wall so that the back wall 39 is hidden from view.

The control housing 27 is adapted to be supported from the cooktop 11 by means of a pair of upstanding brace members 40, 41 which are not identical, but are represented by a left-hand brace member 40 and a right-hand brace member 41 as is best seen in FIGURE 1. Some means must be provided for attaching the brace members 40, 41 to the cooktop 11 and this is provided by a pair of angular bracket members 43 which are identical and are adapted to be welded or otherwise connected to the underside of the flanges 19 to the two rear corners of the cooktop 11 on the outside thereof, as is best seen in FIGURE 1. Each bracket member has a vertical side wall 44, a vertical back wall 45 and an outwardly directed flange 46 on the top edge of each side and back wall to underlie the flange 19 of the cooktop 11 and strengthen the flange so as to minimize the chippage of the porcelain enamel coating which is applied to the decorative outer finish of the cooktop 1 1.

One of the design parameters for a one-piece built-in range of the type illustrated is that it must be capable of supporting the weight of an average person who might climb onto the kitchen countertop and step over onto the range. Moreover, it is well to minimize the thermal mass of the bracket member 43 so as to eliminate dangerous thermal gradients in the bracket and cooktop assembly. This is accomplished by providing each bracket member with a large number of holes or cut-outs 48, as well as to provide stand-off bumps or embossments 49 on the inner surface thereof so as to space the main portion of the bracket away from the cooktop Ill and reduce the conduction of heat from the cooktop 11 to the bracket member.

It is also necessary to provide some type of hold-down means for this range 10 so that it will not become displaced from the counter structures 14, especially when the oven door 12 is open and a heavy load is placed thereon which might tend to raise the back portion of the range out of the counter. Notice that each bracket member 43 is provided with a lanced tab 51 at each end thereof. The tab is bent into a shape so that its lower end is inclined inwardly at about a angle and it is provided with a threaded opening 52. Thus, a thumb screw 53 may be threaded through the opening 52 and bear against the underside of the countertop 15 as is best seen in FIGURES 1 and 2. Access to this thumb screw may be had by lifting one of the surface heating units 21 and reaching the hand through the opening in the cooktop and grasping the thumbscrew.

Each brace member 40 and 41 is provided with a lower portion 55 that has a pair of inwardly lanced tabs 56 for mating engagement in a pair of slots 57 in the related bracket member 43. These tabs 56 of both brace members 40 and 41 extend in the same direction so that when the brace members 40 and 41 are fastened to the control housing 27 this subassem'bly of control housing and bracemembers may be assembled to the two bracket members 43 by first inserting the tabs 56 through the slots 57 and then shifting the subassembly slightly to the side to engage the tabs behind one side edge of the slots 57. This explains another reason for providing the standoff bumps 49 in the bracket members 43, 43 in that the plane of the back wall 45 of each bracket member is spaced from the cooktop to allow the tabs 56 to slip between the cooktop and the bracket. Screws 58 may be threaded through the lower portion of each brace member 40, 41 and into threaded openings 59 of the related bracket member for holding the brace members firmly in place with respect tothe bracket members so that the control housing 27 may not move in a sidewise direction. Of course, this same holding function can be obtained merely by pushing the counter cabinets 14 against the opposite sides of the range so that the control housing is sandwiched between the counter structures and has no available room for movement.

-Each brace member 40, 41 is provided with an upper portion 61 which is turned in a place that is perpendicular to the plane of the lower portion 55. This is possible by forming an intermediate portion 62 of generally horizontal form which is an extension of the top edge of the lower portion 55. Thus, the top portion 61 is an extension ofthe outermost side edge of the intermediate portion 62. The bottom wall 31 of the control housing 27 is provided with a suitable opening 63 for receiving the upper portion 61 of each brace member 40, 41 into the interior of the control housing 27 closely adjacent the inner surface of the side walls 32, 33 of the control housing.

Now, looking at FIGURE 3, the upper portion 61 of the brace member 40 is shown with a pair of generally horizontal slots 64 in each of which is slidably mounted a short pin or rivet 65, the extent of which can best be seen in FIGURE 2. Supported by these two rivets 65 is an elongated clamping bar 66 which is located on the inner side of the upper portion 61 of the brace member 40. The upper portion 61 of the brace member 40 is also provided with a second set of generally horizontal slots 68. The clamping bar 66 also has a threaded opening 69 that is in alignment with each slot 68. Moreover, the

side wall 32 of the control housing 27 is provided with a screw-receiving opening 70, as seen in FIGURE 2, in alignment with each slot 68, and an adjusting screw 71 fits through the side wall opening 70 and through the slot 68 and is threaded into the opening 69 of the clamping 'bar 66. Thus, when the adjusting screws 71 are loosened, it is possible to shift the control housing 27 in a front-toback direction so that the adjusting screws 71 slide in the slots 68 and the rivets 65 slide in the slots 64. Thus relative movement between the control housing and the brace members 40 and 41 is effected.

The clamping bar 66 is in reality a double nut for the pair of adjusting screws 71. Each nut is incapable of turning therefore it need not be grasped by the appliance serviceman while tightening the screws 71. Moreover, the rivet members slide easily within the slots 64. If the control housing 27 were a working control housing supporting the many appliance control elements that are necessary in a fully equipped cooktop or range, then it would be advantageous to render the housing front-serviceable. This is readily available by means of the present invention as the screws 71 may be removed and the control housing lifted off of the brace members 40 and 41 and turned face down on the cooktop 11. Notice that the clamping bar 66 is fixed relative to the side walls 32 and 33 of the control housing 27. This is due to the cooperation of the adjusting screws 71. Hence, a modification would be to make the clamping bar 66 rigid with its adjacent side wall 32 or 33 so that the upper portion 61 of the brace member 44) or 41 would be sandwiched between the side wall and the clamping bar as heretofore.

This invention is not limited to use with cooking appliances. It could also be adapted for built-in clothes washers, automatic dishwashers and for use with "builtin kitchen appliances in general.

Modifications of this invention will occur to those skilled in this art; therefore, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed but that it is intended to cover all modifications which are within the true spirit and scope of this invention as claimed.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A cooking appliance adapted to be supported as a unit from the top surface of a notched counter structure, said appliance comprising at least a rectangular cooking surface having a plurality of surface heating means mounted therein, supporting flanges on the opposite side edges of the cooking surface that are adapted to overlie respectively the adjacent side edges of the notched counter structure, an upstanding control housing extending along the rear edge of the cooking surface; the invention comprising quick-connect means for attaching the control housing to the appliance, and adjustment means for varying the front-to-back position of the control housing relative to the appliance, a pair of bracket members fastened to the back portion of the appliance, one bracket member adjacent each side thereof, a pair of upstanding brace members, each brace member having a telescopic connecting engagement with one of the bracket members, the bottom portion of the control housing having openings for receiving the top portion of the upstanding brace members therethrough, and a sliding pin and slot connecting means between each side of the control housing and the adjacent upstanding brace member.

2. A cooking appliance adapted to be supported as a unit from the top surface of a counter structure that is separated and spaced apart by a distance to accommodate the appliance therebetween, said appliance comprising at least a rectangular cooking surface having a plurality of surface heating means mounted therein, a supporting flange on the opposite side edges of the cooking surface that is adapted to overlie respectively the adjacent edge portions of the separated counter structure; the invention comprising an upstanding control housing extending over the rear edge of the cooking surface, adjustment means for varying the front-to-back position of the control housing relative to the appliance, a pair of bracket members fastened to the back portion of the appliance, one bracket member adjacent each side thereof, a pair of upstanding brace members for fastening to the bracket members, the bottom portion of the control housing having related openings each for receiving the top portion of the brace members therethrough, and a sliding pin and slot connecting means between each side of the control housing and the adjacent top portion of the brace member, whereby the said pin and slot connecting means may be loosened and the control housing shifted in a front-toback relationship with respect to the brace members and hence to the appliance.

3. A cooking appliance adapted to be used with a counter structure abutting each side thereof, said appliance comprising at least a rectangular cooking surface having a plurality of surface heating means mounted therein, and means for supporting the cooking surface in a fixed relation with respect to the counter structure; the invention comprising an upstanding control housing extending over the rear edge of the cooking surface, a pair of bracket members fastened at the back of the appliance adjacent the two sides thereof, a pair of upstanding brace members fastened to the pair of bracket members respectively, the bottom portion of the control housing having related openings each for receiving the top portion of a brace member therethrough, the top portion of each brace member having a first set of horizontal slots, :1 rivet positioned in each slot, and an elongated clamping bar supported by the two rivets, a second set of horizontal slots, the clamping bar having a threaded opening in alignment with each slot of the second set, the control housing having side walls with screw-receiving openings also in alignment with the second set of slots, and screw fasteners extending through the side wall openings and into the threaded openings of the clamping bar, whereby the control housing is capable of front-to-back adjustment with respect to the appliance.

4. A cooking appliance adapted to be sandwiched b tween a separated counter structure, said appliance comprising a top cooking surface and an underlying oven with a front opening door, the top cooking surface having a plurality of surface heating means mounted therein, an upstanding control housing extending over the rear edge of the cooking Surface; the invention comprising means for adjusting the front-to-back position of the control housing relative to the cooking surface, a pair of upstanding brace members joining the control housing to the back of the cooking surface, the housing having a bottom wall with openings for receiving the top portion of each brace member therethrough, the control housing having a pair of side walls, where the top portion of each brace member covers a portion of the inner surface of the adjacent housing side walls, each brace member having a first set of generally horizontal slots, a rivet positioned for sliding movement in each slot, and an elongated clamping bar supported by the two rivets on the innermost side of the brace member, each brace member having a second set of generally horizontal slots, the clamping bar having a threaded opening in alignment with each slot of a second set, each side wall of the hous ing having a pair of screw openings, and screw fasteners extending through the openings of the housing side walls into the threaded openings of the adjacent clamping bar.

5. A domestic range comprising a top cooking surface and an underlying oven with a front opening door, the top cooking surface having a plurality of surface heating means mounted therein, an upstanding control housing extending over the rear edge of the cooking surface, an angular bracket member fastened to the outside of the cooking surface at each back corner thereof, a pair of upstanding brace members for connecting the control housing to the pair of angular bracket members respectively, the lower portion of each brace member having a tab and slot connecting means with the related bracket member, and holding means for preventing relative movement between each brace member and its related bracket member, the housing having a bottom wall with a pair of openings for receiving the top portion of the brace members therethrough, the control housing having a pair of side walls, where the top portion of each brace member covers a portion of the inner surface of the adjacent housing side wall, each brace member having a first set of generally horizontal slots, 3. rivet positioned for sliding movement in each slot, and an elongated clamping bar supported by the two rivets on the inner most side of the brace member, each brace member having a second set of generally horizontal slots, the clamping bar having a threaded opening in alignment with each slot of the second set, each side wall of the housing having a pair of screw openings, and screw fasteners extending through the openings of the housing side walls and into the threaded openings of the adjacent clamping bar.

6. A domestic range comprising a top cooking surface and an underlying oven with a front opening door, the top cooking surface being recessed and including a plurality of surface heating means therein, an outwardly directed flange extending around the two sides and the back edge of the cooking surface, an angular bracket member at the outside of each back corner of the cooking surface and fastened to both the side and the back wall of the cooking surface, each bracket member having a top flange configuration which is supported under the said outwardly directed flange of the cooking surface, an upstanding control housing extending over the back edge of the cooking surface, a pair of upstanding brace members for connecting the control housing to the pair of bracket members respectively, the lower portion of each brace member having a telescopic connecting means with the related bracket member, and holding means for preventing relative movement between each brace member and its related bracket member, the control housing having a bottom wall with openings for receiving the top portion of each brace member therethrough, the control housing having a pair of side walls, where the top portion of each brace member covers a portion of the inner surface of the adjacent housing side wall, each brace member having a first set of generally horizontal slots, a rivet positioned for sliding movement in each slot, and an elongated clamping bar supported by the two rivets on the innermost side of the brace member, each brace member having a second set of generally horizontal slots, the clamping bar having a threaded opening in alignment with each slot of the second set, each side wall of the housing having a pair of screw openings, and screw fasteners extending through the openings of the housing side walls and into the threaded openings of the adjacent clamping bar.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,051,160 8/1962 Nielsen 126-37 3,154,357 10/1964 Urbank et al. 1262l3 X CHARLES J. MYHRE, Primary Examiner. 

1. A COOKING APPLIANCE ADAPTED TO BE SUPPORTED AS A UNIT FROM THE TOP SURFACE OF A NOTCHED COUNTER STRUCTURE, SAID APPLIANCE COMPRISING AT LEAST A RECTANGULAR COOKING SURFACE HAVING A PLURALITY OF SURFACE HEATING MEANS MOUNTED THEREIN, SUPPORTING FLANGES ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE EDGES OF THE COOKING SURFACE THAT ARE ADAPTED TO OVERLIE RESPECTIVELY THE ADJACENT SIDE EDGES OF THE NOTCHED COUNTER STRUCTURE, AN UPSTANDING CONTROL HOUSING EXTENDING ALONG THE REAR EDGE OF THE COOKING SURFACE; THE INVENTION COMPRISING QUICK-CONNECT MEANS FOR ATTACHING THE CONTROL HOUSING TO THE APPLIANCE, AND ADJUSTMENT MEANS FOR VARYING THE FRONT-TO-BACK POSITION OF THE CONTROL HOUSING RELATIVE TO THE APPLIANCE, A PAIR OF BRACKET MEMBERS FASTENED TO THE BACK PORTION OF THE APPLIANCE, ONE BRACKET MEMBER ADJACENT EACH SIDE THEREOF, A PAIR OF UPSTANDING BRACE MEMBERS, EACH BRACE MEMBER HAVING A TELESCOPIC CONNECTING ENGAGEMENT WITH ONE OF THE BRACKET MEMBERS, THE BOTTOM PORTION OF THE CONTROL HOUSING HAVING OPENINGS FOR RECEIVING THE TOP PORTION OF THE UPSTANDING BRACE MEMBERS THERETHROUGH, AND A SLIDING PIN AND SLOT CONNECTING MEANS BETWEEN EACH SIDE OF THE CONTROL HOUSING AND THE ADJACENT UPSTANDING BRACE MEMBER. 